How does a Bay Area Republican survive? Act like a Democrat

Assemblywoman Catharine Baker addresses a group of volunteers at her campaign headquarters before they fan out to canvass neighborhoods in San Ramon, Calif. on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2018. The incumbent Republican is facing a challenge for her 16th District seat from Democratic candidate Rebecca Bauer-Kahan.

Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

Catharine Baker calls herself pro-choice, pro-environment and pro-gun control. As the only Republican to hold partisan office in the decidedly liberal Bay Area, it may be the only way she can hang on.

Since she was first elected in 2014, the East Bay assemblywoman has split with the GOP on issues that define it nationally and has sought to distance herself from the man who now controls the Republican Party, President Trump. Her tenure in Sacramento has been marked by frequent excursions across the aisle to work with Democrats.

“That’s one of the strongest signatures of my record: independence from parties and interest groups,” Baker said. “I feel I’m one of the most effective members of the Legislature that way.”

But now, Baker is running for re-election against an actual Democrat, Rebecca Bauer-Kahan. A law professor and first-time candidate, Bauer-Kahan questions whether Baker is really all that moderate and is working to tie her more closely to the Republican Party, in hopes of dislodging the GOP from the lone elective office it holds in the Bay Area.

Democratic Assembly candidate Rebecca Bauer-Kahan attends a campaign house party in Lafayette on Sept. 26.

Photo: Sarahbeth Maney / Special to the Chronicle

“I do respect choosing the best person — and that can transcend party lines — but then it does come down to the issues,” Bauer-Kahan said. “I just couldn’t stand by when my representative wasn’t voting my values.”

GOP Assemblywoman Catharine Baker approaches a voter’s home while canvassing a neighborhood in San Ramon on Sept. 29.

Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle

The demographics of a district that runs through suburbs from Walnut Creek to Livermore would appear to favor Bauer-Kahan: Democrats hold a 14-point registration advantage over Republicans. But Baker has defied those odds twice, and she points to a glowing tribute from Gov. Jerry Brown as proof she deserves a third term. To read the full story, click here.

Deep dives and late takes

•Benioff’s big splash: Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff commits $2 million of his and his company’s money to pass San Francisco’s Proposition C, which would tax the city’s biggest businesses to pay for homeless programs.

•Why Cox runs:John Cox, the Republican candidate for California governor, says he came to distrust politics early. That distrust has motivated him to run for office five times.

•Newsom calls out S.F.: The city he used to govern has become “too permissive” when it comes to open drug use, says former Mayor and current candidate for governor Gavin Newsom.

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The Political Punch newsletter publishes Tuesdays and Thursdays between noon and 3 p.m. It is produced by the staff of The San Francisco Chronicle and edited by politics editor Trapper Byrne. Email: tbyrne@sfchronicle.com

Holly Honderich is a reporting fellow with The Chronicle’s politics team. Originally from Toronto, Canada, Holly graduated from Queen’s University in political science and is completing her master’s in journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School. Before joining The Chronicle, Holly wrote for the Toronto Star and, most recently, the BBC’s DC bureau, where she completed a reporting trip to the Mexico-US border to cover protests to US immigration policy. Her work has been featured in USA Today, Illinois Channel and UPI.